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Bloomberg’s comment came a day after Costas slammed gun violence during a halftime segment that aired during the Dallas Cowboys-Philadelphia Eagles game. Costas was discussing the subject in light of Saturday’s murder-suicide in Kansas City, in which Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher shot the mother of his child, and then killed himself.

“You want some actual perspective on this?” Costas said Sunday.

He then quoted and paraphrased an article from Kansas City-based writer Jason Whitlock.

“Our current gun culture, Whitlock wrote, ensures that more and more domestic disputes will end in the ultimate tragedy,” Costas said. He added later, “Here, wrote Jason Whitlock, is what I believe: if Jovan Belcher didn’t possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.”

Costas faced swift condemnation from conservatives, especially on Twitter, where people including Herman Cain and Ted Nugent slammed him.